The climate summit has failed, but we are discussing Greta‘s train journey. Why do we do that?

I care deeply about our planet. After all it is the only home we humans have. However, the longer I do, the more desperate I become. Too few people are willing to take, or at least support, the drastic measures that will most likely be necessary to avert the climate disaster.

I and rest of my family can go vegan; we’re working on that. We can prefer trains over cars; have been for many years. We can take to the streets to support activists; did so last fall. However, unless we put legislation in place to drastically curb carbon emission it will all be in vain.

When an overwhelming majority of the global science community declares a “climate crisis” and warns of “untold suffering” we should listen – better listen darn well. How can little and stubborn people question science? Think about it for a moment. What motives would those scientists have to exaggerate, lie or conspire? What would they get out of it?

Right: none.

Hence, they are quite likely sincere in their concern. It doesn’t matter whether it’s 93%, 95% or 98% of the actively publishing climate scientists who agree. Those numbers are far far beyond any reasonable doubt anyhow.

And how can those same stubborn little people hate a Swedish girl rather than “hate” the climate change the girl fights?

One of my favorite Swiss journalists wrote a long essay about exactly that question back in December 2019. That piece is so compelling and so to the point that I keep coming back to it. Here’s a tiny nugget:

That there are understandable reasons why children and adolescents can get on your nerves: given. But the furor and distance of these men [renowned men who make fun of the Climate Youth] has something ridiculous, unworthy. As if an adult stormed the playground, beat up a few eight-year-olds and then proudly left again: I showed them, didn’t I?

the article talking about intellectuals among the Greta haters

Read here the full version in German and in English (automatically translated by DeepL). I keep PDF copies here because the original link will eventually become dead over the years.